Uploading DICOM images to Radiopaedia

Uploading DICOM images to Radiopaedia is possible through the case creation page with full client-side anonymisation. 

Here is what occurs: 

1. drag and drop: drag and drop the DICOM folder into the case upload area (this will not be uploaded at this stage)

2. anonymisation: the files will be processed on your computer with all fields potentially containing patient information being anonymised

3. review: at this stage, you can review all the images and fields to check what fields have been kept for the upload; these are the bare minimum to allow identification of modality, orientation etc...

4. optimize: you can trim unwanted images from the start and end of the stack as well as pan and zoom/crop (note: cropping will permanently remove unwanted regions and remove co-registration for future use)

5. upload: once you are happy you can choose which images to upload. Only then will the fully anonymised images be sent from your browser to Radiopaedia servers

6. web-optimization: our servers then store the anonymised DICOM files and convert them to smaller size web-optimized images for viewing.

DICOM processing

Ongoing work to handle DICOM files better and enable future native DICOM viewing and manipulation includes behind-the-scenes work to revamp the image processing pipeline responsible for step (6) above.

In order to minimize disruption while allowing our users to benefit from this work, we made it possible to opt for individual stacks into using this new processing pipeline. In particular, if a DICOM upload looks correct in the uploader but displays incorrectly in the case viewer after processing, using the new DICOM processing tool in the uploader to switch the series to use the "latest" image processing pipeline may help. When switching between "legacy" and "latest" in the dropdown, the tool will display a preview. Clicking "Apply" will enable the previewed representation to be displayed for all visitors.

When a new series is uploaded, the uploader now shows the progress of server-side processing and will automatically reload the viewer, displaying the web-optimized images. This is in part to help authors decide whether the "latest" image processing pipeline should be used for a certain stack of DICOM sources. If the displayed image changes significantly when the web-optimized images load, it might be worth having a look whether the new processing mode fixes the issue.

Eventually, once we are satisfied with the new processing mode, new uploads will automatically use it by default. Until then, we are counting on your feedback in improving the experience! We are closely monitoring DICOM processing correctness of both methods, but any issues or feedback is welcome in the Tech questions and bugs channel in our chat.

Native DICOM manipulation

As of mid-2024, native DICOM viewing capabilities are not available. However, as the DICOM case library expands, the ability to use a PACS-like DICOM viewer for these cases is planned. There is no timeline for this.